Elgin Symphony Orchestra Beethoven's 9th Program

Beethoven’s 9th

Saturday, May 4, 2024, at 7:30 PM Sunday, May 5, 2024, at 2:30 PM HEMMENS CULTURAL CENTER Chad Goodman, conductor Laura Strickling, soprano | Mary Phillips, mezzo-soprano Thomas Cooley, tenor | Hadleigh Adams, baritone Elgin Master Chorale

MOZART

Ave verum corpus, K. 618 Elgin Master Chorale

JESSIE MONTGOMERY

Hymn for Everyone ~ Intermission ~

BEETHOVEN

Symphony No. 9 in D minor, op. 125 Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso Molto vivace Adagio molto e cantabile Presto-Allegro assai Laura Strickling, soprano Mary Phillips, mezzo-soprano Thomas Cooley, tenor Hadleigh Adams, baritone Elgin Master Chorale

This program is supported, in part, by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency

ORCHESTRA PERSONNEL Violin I Isabella Lippi Concertmaster Eleanor Bartsch Associate Concertmaster Gerald Loughney Kate Carter Eric Pidluski Joseph Malmquist Susan Carlson Carol Dylan Helen Kim Lee Wendy Evans Carmen Abelson Jennifer Leckie Violin II Daniela Folker Principal Robbie Herbst Assistant Principal Caroline Slack Maria Arrua Susan Thorne Steve Winkler Cristina Buciu Elizabeth Huffman Kelvin Lin Meg Lanfear Kathryn Siegel Viola Amanda Grimm Principal Loretta Gillespie Assistant Principal Rebecca Swan Jason Butler Erin Rafferty Sava Velkoff Susan Posner

Cello Matthew Agnew Principal Nazar Dzhuryn Assistant Principal Kerena Fox Mark Kuntz Robert Weber Elizabeth Start Sara Sitzer Double Bass Timothy Shaffer Principal Jeremy Attanaseo Assistant Principal Susan Sullivan Gregory Heintz Jason Niehoff Flute Jean Bishop Principal Scott Metlicka Piccolo Scott Metlicka Oboe Andrew Port Principal Joseph Claude English Horn Joseph Claude Clarinet Gene Collerd Principal Trevor O’Riordan

Bassoon Vincent Desantis Principal Collin Anderson French Horn Greg Flint Principal Steven Replogle Sharon Jones Mary Buscanics-Jones Trumpet Ross Beacraft Principal Michael Brozick David Gauger Assistant Principal Trombone Reed Capshaw Principal Adam Moen Bass Trombone Mark Fry Tuba Charles Schuchat Principal Timpani Robert Everson Principal Percussion Brian Oriente Principal Michael Folker

ESO BOARD AND ADMINISTRATION EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

DIRECTORS

R. Bert Crossland

Alexis India Alm Ross Beacraft* Carlos Chavez Michele Clark Dr. Gene Crume Joyce Dlugopolski Jennifer Fukala Sandra Hagan K. Eric Larson Dr. Thomas Long Mary Maloy

Board Chair

Andre Fiebig

Immediate Past Board Chair

Robert Chiappetta Treasurer

Rev. Arlyn Tolzmann Secretary

Dr. Patricia Harkin Governance Chair

Frank Maxson Carole Medal Martin Nobs Patrick Parks Timothy Shaffer* Dr. Savitha Susarla James Tammi Marc Thayer, CEO* Rafael Villagomez Herman A. Zwirn

* Ex Officio members

HONORARY LIFETIME DIRECTORS Harry ◊ & Phyllis Blizzard Edward & Pearle Brody ◊ Dean & Jane Chipman ◊

Richard Collins ◊ Ed & Karen Schock Deceased ◊

ADMINISTRATION EXECUTIVE

DEVELOPMENT & MARKETING

OPERATIONS

Marc C. Thayer

Chuck Kocal

David Goldman

Leslie Antoniel

Eric Block

Mitchell Bennett

Elsa Jimenez

Chief Executive Officer

Rebecca DeWane Director of Finance & Administration

ARTISTIC Eric Gaston-Falk

Vice President of Artistic Planning & Operations

Macauley Manzano

Orchestral Librarian & Digital Marketing Manager

Director of Marketing Development Consultant Director of Patron and Community Development

Jonathan Horn

Development Coordinator

Donna Lake

Public Relations Manager

Erica Warszewik

Box Office Manager

Pia Laipert

Foundation, Corporate and Government Grants

Stage Manager Stage Manager

Translator

LaTrisha Williams

In Harmony Program Coordinator

ELGIN MASTER CHORALE Sopranos Jan Andresen Kristen Balisi Terry Bauer Samantha Breen Marilyn DeStefano Lauren Holmer Andrea Kleban Leslie Marcordes Magen McCarthy Diane McDonald Susan Miller Karen Neidlinger Michele Neidlinger Melissa Pagano-Arndt Cheri Panzloff Kathryn Petricca ColleenPrice Elizabeth Roberts Gail Rossow Kelsey Rubin Kathy Rubino Diana Seymour Victoria Strissel Ashley Storinger Katrina Teas Mary Ulery Allie Vargas Rosalyn Wesley

Altos Dina Ackermann Patricia Aurand Samantha Beckmann Kimberly Bianchi Alison Bleick Karen Brhel Saffron Bruno Margaret Cannizzaro Christine Dalphy Elizabeth Dooley Marcia Harran Sarah Henry Robin Hladky-Fox Gwen Holst Jennifer Kaap Marilyn Keblusek Caryn Kingseed Rachel E. Maley Linda Mueller Melinda Oakey Kaitlyn Pacchini Carol Rechtoris Christine Ross Melissa Routzahn Moira Savel Diane Schael Kathy Shaughnessy Erin Smith Laurie Stivers Kori Stoll Irene Strejc Lisa Styles Dorothy Voigt Christy Williamson Luann Zanzola

Tenors Deb Anderson Scott Gates Geoffrey Garner Keith Guimon Philip McPeek Nicholas Metzger Lisa Michnick Keith Murphy Ken Prazak Eric Skalinder Matthew Stone Kermit Swanson Geoff Thevenot Cheri Walter Basses Bob Acker Mark Clemens Tom Fox Chris Johnson Brian Karzen Arnie Klehm Alberto Mantovano Robert Martin Dennis Rossow Burch Seymour Jay Smith Daniel Spike Franz Stockmann

MUSIC DIRECTOR Chad Goodman has received widespread praise for thrilling conducting that combines “precision, agility and fervor” (N. Stanić Kovačevic, South Florida Classical Review) and for displaying the “pitch perfect combination of abandon and subtlety” (L. Budman, South Florida Classical Review).

The 2023/24 season marks Goodman’s inaugural season as Music Director of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra—only the fifth leader in the orchestra’s prestigious seven-decade history.

Concerts with the ESO include Strauss’ Four Last Songs with soprano Christine Brewer, Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5, Schumann’s Piano Concerto with Orli Shaham and Beethoven’s Symphonies No. 2 and No. 9.

Goodman holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music and a Master of Music degree from San Francisco State University. His mentors include Michael Tilson Thomas and Alasdair Neale.

ARTISTA INVIDATO Elgin Master Chorale The Elgin Master Chorale (EMC) is a cultural cornerstone of Elgin and the Fox Valley. Under the direction of Music Director Andrew Lewis, EMC is comprised of approximately 90 adult singers - admitted by audition only - who share a passion for choral masterworks and other fine choral repertoire. EMC was formed in 1947, under the name Elgin Choral Union, when singers from fifteen local choirs joined together to perform Brahms’ German Requiem.

EMC creates collaborations with local performing arts organizations such as the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, the Maud Powell String Quartet, Chamber Music on the Fox, Ballet Folklorico

Huehuecoyotl, Second Baptist Church Choir, and many others that elevate and energize the community.

EMC produces an annual educational outreach concert, free of charge, for fourth – sixth grade area students, created specifically for their engagement, education, and artistic enjoyment. In this way, area students learn to value the arts as an integral part of their growth and a path to achieving their full potential.

EMC performs many free concerts each year at Gail Borden Public Library, at Elgin’s Memorial Day observance, and at Elgin City Council’s New Citizens Recognition Ceremony. Civic celebrations, such as these, inspire and unite the community and are especially meaningful to members.

EMC, in its 77th season, is proud of its rich history, dedicated singers, and drive to excel. EMC has grown from its valued roots as a "union" of choirs and is dedicated to the mission of being the premiere vocal ensemble in the Fox Valley.

Laura Strickling, soprano Two-time GRAMMY®-nominated soprano Laura Strickling has been recognized by The New York Times for her “flexible voice, crystalline diction, and warm presence.”

Celebrated for her work performing and promoting art song, with an emphasis on new additions to the canon, she curated The New Music Shelf Anthology of contemporary art songs for soprano and has collaborated with numerous composers including Tom Cipullo, Daniel Felsenfeld, Juliana Hall, Libby Larsen, James Matheson, John Musto, and Glen Roven. She is on the roster of the Brooklyn Art Song Society, and has appeared with Cincinnati Song Initiative, Mexicoliederfest, Calliope’s Call, Liederfest in Suzhou (China), the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, Lyric Fest, Joy in Singing, Trinity Concerts at One, the American Liszt Society, Baltimore Lieder Weekend, the Half Moon Music Festival, Concerts on the Slope, National Sawdust, Art Song at the Old Stone House, the Brooklyn New Music Collective,

SongFusion, was a featured performer at the 2016 New Music Gathering, and presented a radio broadcast recital of American songs on “Live from WFMT” in Chicago with pianist Daniel Schlosberg.

Ms. Strickling received critical acclaim in the Naxos Opera Classics recording of The Parting by Tom Cipullo (co-starring baritone Michael Mayes and mezzo-soprano Catherine Cook) for her “…deeply expressive, secure voice. Her exposed highs are managed wonderfully, with notable beauty.” James Matheson’s Times Alone on Yarlung Records was hailed by MusicWeb International for “shapely, nuanced voicings and emotional urgency...a striking directness.” Glen Roven’s The Vineyard Songs with pianist Michael Brofman is on New Voices, the Billboard Classical Top-Ten-selling CD. She can also be heard on “New American Song@SongFest,”, performing Jake Heggie’s Edna St. Vincent Millay with pianist Dimitri Dover, and on The Garden: Songs and Vocal Chamber Music of Tom Cipullo, performing the landmark song cycle Of a Certain Age with pianist Liza Stepanova. Her first solo recording project of American art song, Confessions with pianist Joy Schreier, was nominated for a 2020 GRAMMY® Award.

A Chicago native, Ms. Strickling is an avid traveler, having lived in Morocco, where she studied classical Arabic at the Arabic Language Institute of Fez, and Kabul, Afghanistan, where her husband was the founding chair of the Department of Law at the American University of Afghanistan. She currently makes her home in St. Thomas, U. S. Virgin Islands.

Mary Phillips, mezzo-soprano With a voice that has been called “pure gold,” and dramatic gifts that place her in the first rank of singer-actors, American mezzo-soprano Mary Phillips is closely associated with the music of Wagner. She sings many mezzo roles in the Ring cycle and made her acclaimed role debut as Brangäne in Tristan und Isolde for Dallas Opera, as well as returning to the Metropolitan Opera as Schwertleite in Die

Walküre, in which she also covered the role of Fricka. She has sung Fricka and Waltraute in Die Walküre and Waltraute in Götterdämmerung at Canadian Opera; Erda in the Scottish Opera’s Ring, and Wellgunde and Rossweise in Seattle Opera’s Ring cycles.

Ms. Phillips has also been hailed for her Verdi; she made her Met debut in La forza del destino, and her San Francisco Opera debut in Rigoletto. Of her performances of Princess Eboli in Don Carlo, a role she has sung for Austin, Canadian, Sarasota and Vancouver Operas, Vancouver Sun said “she deserves an opera best supporting actress Oscar: vocally confident and theatrically practiced, she is a singer/actress of power and stature.” She has also sung Azucena in Il trovatore at the Seattle Opera and Arizona. Of her Amneris in Aida, one reviewer wrote, “in this difficult role requiring agility, a wide vocal range and emotional strength, Phillips poured her heart and voice into it.” Recent and upcoming seasons have featured Phillips with The Metropolitan Opera (Rusalka/Jezibaba), Edmonton Opera (Salome/Herodias), Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra (Tristan und Isolde/Brangane), New York City Opera (In the Garden of the Finzi-Continis) and Opera Birmingham (Gertrude/ Ambroise Thomas’ Hamlet). Other recent engagements of note include Jezibaba in Dvorak’s Rusalka with the Metropolitan Opera and roles in Strauss’s Elektra with the Metropolitan Opera and the Boston Symphony Orchestra at both Symphony Hall and Carnegie Hall in New York.

Ms. Phillips maintains a strong interest in Baroque repertoire. On the opera stage this has included Sesto in Giulio Cesare in Barcelona and Eduige in Rodelinda for Dallas Opera. Concert appearances include Messiah at Carnegie Hall and with the Atlanta Symphony, Baltimore Symphony, New Jersey Symphony, and Gulbenkian Orchestra in Lisbon, as well as with the Seattle Symphony, with whom she has also performed Bach's Mass in B Minor. She has sung the Vivaldi Gloria at the Hollywood Bowl with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and has recorded the Bach Magnificat for Boston Baroque.

Thomas Cooley, tenor With an acclaimed international performance career spanning over two decades, tenor Thomas Cooley continues to set the standard in his field, delivering memorable performances across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. These performances have taken him to 30 different states across the United States and to numerous countries worldwide.

Cooley has made noteworthy appearances in major concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw, Konzerthaus Berlin, Berlin Philharmonie, Tonhalle Zürich, Symphony Hall Boston, Avery Fisher Hall, Konzerthaus Vienna, Walt Disney Hall, Kennedy Center, Bavarian State Opera, Tchaikovsky Hall Moscow, and the KKZ Lucerne, Festival Hall Osaka, and Singapore’s Esplanade Hall, and has collaborated with numerous distinguished conductors such as Helmuth Rilling, Donald Runnicles, Teodor Currentzis, Michael Tilson-Thomas, Nicholas McGegan, Robert Spano, Franz WelserMöst, Bernard Labadie, Harry Bicket, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Osmo Vänskä, Eiji Oue, Lan Shui, Matthew Halls, David Robertson, Dame Jane Glover, Markus Stenz, Carlo Rizzi, Thomas Søndergård, Manfred Honneck, Jaap van Zweden, Edo de Waart, Paul McCreesh and Andrea Marcon.

Renowned as an expert in the works of Handel and J.S. Bach, particularly in the role of the Evangelist, Cooley has performed this repertoire with renowned ensembles such as the Thomanerchor and Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzig, the Windsbacher Knabenchor and the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, the Dresdener Kreuzchor and the Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart. He also performs regularly with historically informed groups such as Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, the Göttingen and Halle Handel Festivals, Les Violons du Roy, MusicAeterna, Tafelmusik, Handel and Haydn Society, Boston Baroque, the Carmel and Oregon Bach Festivals, Pacific MusicWorks, Music of the Baroque and the Munich Bach Choir. Cooley has a close working relationship with the Baroque specialist Nicholas McGegan, with whom he has performed over one hundred times

at the Göttingen Händelfestspiele, with the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra and with leading orchestras all across the United States, as well as numerous CD recordings.

Thomas Cooley's discography includes 20 recordings with labels such as Carus, CPO, Deutsche Grammophon, Hänssler, MDG, Orchid Classics and Sony. An upcoming recording of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, under the baton of Nicholas McGegan, is planned for Avie Records 2025.

Hadleigh Adams, baritone New Zealand baritone Hadleigh Adams has amassed a body of work remarkable in its breadth. Committed to both the concert and opera stage, he has collaborated with some of the world’s finest artists.

On the concert stage he has performed as a soloist with the London Philharmonia Orchestra under Esa Pekka Salonen, the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Gustavo Dudamel, the San Francisco Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under Robert Spano, the San Francisco Opera Orchestra under Nicola Luisotti, and Philharmonia Baroque under Nicholas McGegan. He has also performed with the American Bach Soloists, Seattle Symphony, Nashville Symphony, and Colorado Symphony. Renowned for his Handel, he has performed Messiah more than 120 times.

In traditional operatic repertoire Mr. Adams has performed a wide range of characters in a variety of musical styles: Ravel under the baton of Esa Pekka Salonen, Bernstein under Marin Alsop and Michael Tilson Thomas and Louis Langree, Handel under Nicholas McGegan, Puccini under Nicola Luisotti, Mozart under the stage direction of Sir Thomas Allen, Handel under the stage direction of Christopher Alden, and Puccini under the stage direction of Les Miserables director, John Caird. His European debut was at London’s Royal National Theatre in a staged production of Bach’s St Matthew Passion, playing the role of

Jesus, and directed by Sir Jonathan Miller. With the San Francisco Opera alone he has appeared in 19 mainstage productions, and during the 2022 season, he made his 100th performance with the company.

Upcoming engagements include performances of Britten’s War Requiem, Vaughan Williams’ Sea Symphony, Mozart’s Requiem, Orff’s Carmina Burana, Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde, Schmidt's The Book with Seven Seals, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, and Handel’s Messiah and Partenope with organizations including the Dallas and Houston Symphonies, San Francisco Opera, the Wellington Orchestra, the Brisbane Philharmonia and the Choral Society of Grace Church at Carnegie Hall.

PROGRAM NOTES Written by - Daniel Maki Ave verum corpus, K. 618 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-91) Mozart’s Ave verum corpus (Hail the true body) might be described as a brief 5-minute work, containing just 46 bars of music for 4-part chorus and string orchestra. That prosaic description fails to mention that those 46 bars combine a kind of child-like innocence and simplicity with the most sublime religious sentiment in a way that very few composers have ever been able to match.

Mozart would die in December of 1791 after a particularly difficult year. He had fallen into financial trouble and worried constantly about being able to support his family. His wife Constanze was pregnant for the sixth time and in early June went to Baden, a spa near Vienna, to “take the waters,” as the phrase goes. Mozart went to visit her in the middle of the month and in two days had dashed off his 46-bar masterpiece as a gift to Anton Stoll, organist and choirmaster of the parish church of Baden. Stoll was a close friend and admirer of the composer, often performing his music and dropping in on Constanze to assist with medical needs on her frequent visits to the spa. It is most likely that the new work was performed by Stoll on June 23, the Feast of Corpus Christi.

The distinguished critic and author Michael Steinberg brilliantly captured the spirit of the work when he called it “the

essence of simplicity. The harmonies are plain, the texture hardly less so, yet in his whole life—chronologically so short, artistically so long—Mozart never invented anything more affecting than these forty-six perfect measures.” * * * Hymn for Everyone Jessie Montgomery (b. 1981) As young people have always done, members of what we have come to call the “millennial generation" have already made their impression on the world in many ways, and music is no exception. Jessie Montgomery, for example, began to attract attention already in her early twenties and today enjoys a remarkably successful career as composer, violinist and teacher.

Born to a musician father and an actress/writer mother, she grew up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan at a time when that neighborhood was a hotbed of social and artistic experiment. She went on to receive a degree in violin performance from the Juilliard School as well as an advanced degree in Film and Multimedia Composition from New York University. All these factors—familial, social, and academic—have influenced her work, which combines rigorous classical training with elements of jazz, vernacular, and improvisation, as well as a commitment to social awareness.

As a violinist, she has been a member of several string quartets and has performed with the Silkroad Ensemble, founded

by Yo-Yo Ma. As composer, her work is being performed by many major ensembles and she has won numerous grants and awards, including the Leonard Bernstein Award from the ASCAP Foundation.

In April of 2021 she was appointed Mead Composer-inResidence of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, a three-year position that would grant her commissions for three works. As most of humankind surely remembers, April of 2021 was a difficult time for most of us, and creative artists like Jessie Montgomery had to struggle with all the effects of the pandemic in addition to her own artistic situation. At that time she was experiencing a sort of writer’s block as she reached her 40th birthday, and also had to deal with the trauma of her mother’s death. Genuine artists manage to work their way through such problems and Ms. Montgomery did so in inspired fashion. Instead of the multi-movement work that she had

planned, she opted for a simpler approach that would meet the needs of the moment. In her own program notes, she describes the process: “Hymn for Everyone is based on a hymn that I wrote in the spring of 2021 that was a reflection on personal and collective challenges that were happening at the time. Up until that time I had resisted writing ‘response pieces’ to the pandemic and social-political upheaval and had been experiencing an intense writer’s block.

But one day, after a long hike, this hymn just came to me— a rare occurrence. The melody traverses through different orchestral ‘choirs’ and is accompanied by the rest of the ensemble. It is a kind of meditation for orchestra, exploring various washes of color and timbre through each repetition of the melody. “ The work that resulted is a carefully wrought and moving composition that seems to have provided a cathartic effect not only for its composer but for its audience as well. * * * Symphony No. 9 in D minor, op. 125 Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Few works in music history have exerted as wide an influence, been as much discussed, argued about, deeply revered, and both imitated and strongly reacted against, as the last of Beethoven’s symphonies. Within its enormous shadow have gathered innumerable listeners who have been deeply moved by its revolutionary pantheistic and utopian sentiment as well as those who have found such ideals to be hollow and unattainable. There have been many distinguished critics who have considered the Ninth to be one of Beethoven’s greatest technical achievements, and those who thought the very idea of the choral finale a great mistake. (Not to mention those who, like Verdi, thought the vocal writing to be simply incompetent.)

From all this ferment, however, has emerged a consensus which views the Ninth as one of the great monuments of the human spirit as well as a kind of summation of Beethoven’s work and worldview. From his boyhood on, Beethoven had been strongly

influenced by the Enlightenment principles which eventually led to the French Revolution and which were frequently expressed in the works of the poet and dramatist Friedrich Schiller. The idea of setting Schiller’s Ode to Joy had occurred to him while he was in early twenties, and he wrestled with a number of possible versions at various times throughout his career. The final setting, completed and first performed in 1824, was thus the realization of a lifetime of thought and experimentation.

Although the Ninth Symphony can be heard simply as a work of pure music, its extramusical connotations have played an important part in its history. It is no accident that the Ode to Joy theme has for decades served as the theme of the European Union or that Leonard Bernstein chose the Ninth as the work to be performed in Berlin on the occasion of the dismantling of the Berlin Wall. (He took the liberty of changing the word Freude—“Joy”—to Freiheit—“Freedom.”) It is no exaggeration to say that at the time of its creation the Ninth was, at least to some degree, a political statement as well as an artistic one. After years of Napoleonic warfare, the Congress of Vienna in 1815 resulted in a redesign of the map of Europe and the introduction of a new wave of repressive conservatism. In his recent book The Ninth— Beethoven and the World in 1824, Harvey Sachs points out that other artists working at the time such as the poets Heinrich Heine and Alexander Pushkin were censored and threatened with exile or worse by their respective governments for their expression of liberal sentiments. Although Beethoven was never threatened to that extent, the Austria in which he lived had become through the efforts of Prince Metternich one of the earliest examples of the modern police state. As an important public figure, Beethoven’s liberal views were well known, and the enormous emotional power of the Ninth symphony would certainly have served as a ringing affirmation of his viewpoint.

At the risk of using a cliché much abused by high school valedictorians, one might say that in strictly musical terms the Ninth Symphony was both an end and a beginning. Contrary to popular opinion, Beethoven did not completely abandon classical principles of composition in his last works. In many ways the Ninth Symphony is a return to the heroic style of Beethoven’s middle period, remaining faithful to such classical forms as the sonata and theme and variation. At the same time, although the Ninth can be heard as the last gasp of classicism, its novelty cannot be denied.

Its huge proportions and dramatic effects were clearly precursors of a strain of musical romanticism which would think of the

symphony as the grandest of all genres and which would culminate in the immense late romantic symphonies of Bruckner and Mahler.

The broodingly mysterious opening measures of the first movement came to be one of the most widely imitated passages in nineteenth century music. We hear open fifths, only two of the three notes necessary to form a complete chord. By withholding the all-important third, which alone can determine whether a chord is major or minor, Beethoven gives us a preview of what is to come. The entire tragic first movement is a struggle between major and minor keys, with the darkness of minor winning out.

The feeling of mystery and tragedy continues into the scherzo, which, unlike Beethoven’s usual practice, occurs here as the second rather than the third movement. The word scherzo means “joke” in Italian, but here the humor seems to be of a cosmic and, at times, almost demonic sort. Beethoven does display wit in the very opening of the movement (his sense of humor has all too often been underestimated), by deftly parodying the famous opening of the first movement. Adding greatly to the somewhat sardonic humor is the fact that one of the notes is given to the timpani, which, incidentally, plays an important role throughout the entire movement.

After all this storm and stress Beethoven finally gives us relief in the beautiful slow third movement, which consists of variations on two themes. In this movement, which the great Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini said should be conducted “on one’s knees,” Beethoven seems to picture a better world, whose peace is far removed from the turbulence of the opening two movements.

This Arcadian bliss is rudely shattered, however, by what German musicians call the Schreckensfanfare (“Fanfare of Terror”).

Frightfully dissonant chords announce the beginning of the fourth movement, whose gigantic proportions constitute almost an entire four movement symphony in itself. Beethoven the modernist gives us a kind of cinematic flashback technique, in which brief passages from each of the first three movements are heard in quick succession, reminding us of what has gone before. Finally, quietly and tentatively, the low strings sound for the first time the simple, noble theme that has become one of the world’s best-known melodies. After several statements of the theme, terror returns once again, but this time is answered for the first time by a human voice, as a solo baritone sings: “O friends, not these tones: rather let us sing more pleasant ones.” The discord thus banished, the noble words of the Ode to Joy begin.

The remainder of this complex movement unfolds with nearly unparalleled majesty, Among its parts are variations on the familiar theme already heard ; a folksy passage in the so-called “Turkish” style, popular in Vienna at the time, featuring bass drum, cymbals, triangle, and piccolo; a wonderful orchestral interlude consisting of a magnificent double fugue; and an entirely new theme on the words Seid umschlungen, Millionen (“Millions, be embraced”), which seems to reach the limits of sublimity. Along the way, Beethoven strains the human voice to its limits, sending some of the vocal parts into stratospheric ranges, almost as if to say that mere human beings cannot achieve the majesty of his conception.

As mentioned above, the final impression of this colossal movement has struck many listeners in many different ways.

Beethoven’s distinguished biographer, Lewis Lockwood, has described his reaction as follows: “By using Schiller’s Ode to directly address humanity at large, Beethoven conveys the struggle of both the individual and of the millions to work their way through experience from tragedy to idealism and to preserve the image of human brotherhood as a defense against the darkness.” When the magnificent climactic coda of the Ninth Symphony brought the first performance to a close on 7 May 1824 at the Kärntnertor Theater in Vienna, the audience leapt to its feet. Music was never again the same.

The Elgin Symphony Orchestra thanks the following sponsors for their support.

S.E. (STU) Ainsworth Family

Special Thanks To Our Donors $100,000 and Above Otto Engineering The Willow Springs Foundation

$50,000-99,999 S.E. Ainsworth Family Fund R. Bert Crossland

Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity John B. Sanfilippo & Son, Inc.

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Illinois Arts Council Agency Herman & Mary Zwirn

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$1,000-2,499 Mrs. Phyllis Blizzard, in Stephen & Linda Knight John Pilsits memory of Harry Blizzard Mark R. Kuntz Richard W. Renner Alexis India Alm Peter & Constance Erin Riehle Donna F. Templeton Landwehr Mr. & Mrs. Richard Ruth & Dr. John Eric Larson & Margaret Robertson Bradburn Williams Lois Robinson Laura Brady Elizabeth A. Littel John & Carole Ruby David L. Brown Carolyn & Robert Malm Patricia Sekowski Kathryn Canny Marquardt of Barrington Tim Shaffer Walter & Nancy Carlson Russ & Diane Maxwell Drs. April & Frank Smith Gene Collerd, in memory Mike & Marilyn McCarthy Helen Wuu Sprague, in of Matt Mantell McGrath Volvo Cars memory of Dr. Pat Clark Janet & Dennis Conway Barrington (voice teacher in 1992) Deanna K. Engelke Dr. Elizabeth McKay Adam & Laura Gray The Fabish Family Joan Moen Cheryl Stocks Andre R. Fiebig Helen G. Moore Carol Taylor Eric & Jon Gaston-Falk Monica & Sanford Marc Thayer David Gerber Morganstein American Association of Mr. & Mrs. Robert Hahn Motor Werks, Inc University Women Judy Hanlon John & Josephine Aimee Virnig, In Honor Jill Hebeisen Muchmore of Rylan Virnig Valerie A. Heintz A. John Mullins Wickstrom Auto Group Ron & Pat Henning Rick & Nancy Nelson St. Charles Bank & Trust Margaret Mechtenberg Marsha Newcomer Company Craig & Karen Johnson David Olsen & Jim Charles & Nancy Suzanne P. Johnson Weidman Zimmerman David & Carlene Meg & George Peirce Anonymous – 4 Kellenberger Ernie & Joanne Perone

$500-999 Robert Acker & Alison Karl H. Gabbey Bleick Terry Gabel & Sue Alexander's Restaurant Brigham Helen Anderson Robert & Lynn Gilly Herb & Marge Anderson Richard Goodman Michael & Cecilia Judy & Gary Griffith, in Anderson memory of Amy Allan F. Ayers Goodman, and honor of Donna Bach Chad Goodman Lisa & Tim Baran Vivian J. Hileman Ross Beacraft Kathryn Huffman Anna Bicanic Moeller Mary Hunter Connie Bischof Jim & Pat Jocius Mr.& Mrs. Ray B. Rev. Janet & Allen Boroughf Kennedy Melinda Borum Allen S. Kennedy Anne L. Burman Sharon LeCount Mr. & Mrs. Robert L. Ms. Jane Lehmann Cabeen Barbara R. Long Tatiana Calhamer Mary E. Maloy Robert Chiappetta Candace D. McCreary Ann Chipman & Greg Ruth-Ann McKellin Kuepfer Loni Mecum John & Stephanie Cullian Diane Elaine Neal Michael Czerwionka Dr. & Mrs. Jeffrey R. Warren Dahn Neufeld Michael Patrick Dempsey Neel Patel Therese & Patrick Chery Peacock Donoghue Jean Pechtel Matt & Cherie Dorfman Glen & Beth Prezembel Pat & Terry Dunning Quintessential Media Elizabeth J. Murphy, CPA Group Mary Ellen Flaks The Miller Charitable Nancy Fleming Fund, a Donor Advised Ms. Jeanne M. Fox

Fund of Renaissance Charitable Foundation Richard & Carol Leonard Foundation Michael & Robin Rothamer Thomas & Barbara Rowan Howard & Gene Royer Jay & Debbie Schroeder Mark & Ellen Sheppard Melissa & Brian Sherman Bruce & Kathleen Sicklesteel Norma Smith Glenn & Susan Spachman Jon Hauser & Jean Stone Savitha Susarla Elmer & Mary Sweet James & Judith Tammi Hal & Karen Theis Fred & Sue Thorne Celine Voris Richard Renner & Jacqueline Vossler David C. Waring Anita J. Werderich Mr. & Mrs. Larry Wild Norman Wilkinson & Diana March Ron Clayton & Elyse Williamson W. R. Meadows, Inc. Jan & Bob Andry Restoration 1 of Cary Anonymous

$250-499 Melanie S. Abercrombie Sharon Hahn Diane J. Aitken Wayne Heinmiller Mark S. Albert Brian & Bonnie Pritchard Ms. Sharon Aleckson Jeanne Hintz Douglas Anderson Dr. Judith Hopkins Ms. Sara Ellen Anderson Lynn & Craig Horswill, in Judith & Norm Andrews memory of Robert Janas Mr. James Bachman Phil & Pat Johnson Donald Bak Frank & George-Ann Mr. & Mrs. John Becker Kahoun Charles & Marlene Black Bonnie Kalaway Ronald Blake Nancy Kawasaki Robert & Susan Blassick Michele Keehan Carol Blohm Ron & Angela Keller Marlene R. Boncosky Susan Kennedy Barbara A. Bonner Frank & Colleen Kirkaldy Edward & Phyllis Boyd William & Agnes Kovacs Dale Adai Braun Douglas C. Kramp Ms. Joan Brody Jim & Sue Lamb Charles Burnidge Joseph Lampinen Colin C. & Glorianne Mr. & Mrs. Robert Campbell Larrabee Michael & Biana Castro Richard & Patricia Lutz Mr. & Mrs. Louis Cella Ms. Sandra Magana, in Lillian Croke memory of Vera Lochnar Dellora A. Norris Cultural Lynn Mall Arts Center Mr. & Mrs. Arthur Malm Julie Domagalski Robert & Mary McCann Jerry & Judy J. A. McDonald Drommerhausen James McNamee Mr. & Mrs. Stephen Anonymous Etherington Mr. & Mrs. Pat Nelson Bonnie A Fitzpatrick Linda O'Connor Jennifer Fukala Linda O'Gara Sherri & Jeff Goodlove John & Marilyn Ortinau Lorraine R. Gornick Janet Page Mr. & Mrs. Robert Green Jim & Kathy Pluymert Ben & Corinne The Peter Quinn Family Grotenhuis

Mr. & Mrs. Michael Rawlings Maureen A. Resheske Wayne & Eileen Reznicek Gail Rhodes Gail & Dennis Rossow Nancy Rust Mr. & Mrs. Clifford Scheifele Jody Schmeck & Robert Seltzer Richard Schwemm Luanne Scola & Joseph Scola James & Kathy Secora Mr. & Mrs. Ronald Sersen Maria Arrua & Matthew Sheppard Curt Siegel Bonita S. Skapyak Beverly Smithberger William & Roseann Stenzel Linda Stolt Jane C. Taylor Michael Tellin George R. Theros Louise Tiemann Linda Ugo Vanhoeven & VanHoeven, LTD Deb Vensel Aileen & Gregory Vogel Dorothy Voigt Hon. Bonnie M. Wheaton Tom & Linda Youngren John T. Zawada Anonymous - 3

$100-249 Susan J. Allen Joyce & Tom Egan Linda L. Kirn Sandra Horvath Hagan, in Mary Ellen Endo Peter Koenig honor of Patricia Harkin Karen Erickson Ms. Carole Konetzki Donald & Carol Andler Patti Esposito Terri & Tom Lamberti Mary Jo Thelander Joseph & Linda Fagan Philip Lambruschi Glenn Aquino Larry & Linda Fass Nancy Lamia Devonna Armstrong In Memory of Mary C. John & Pat Lenz Art for All Morton Helen Lindow Nancy Bachmann Kerena Fox In Honor of Jeanne Milan Bagel Barbara E. Furman Sigman Allan & Dorothy Barker Douglas Gagne, In Loving Joan Longmire Joyce Helen Barker Memory of Mike and Pat Leslie Mabbott Trey R. Barker Schaefer Grant & Patricia Patricia Becklinger Julie M. Galloway MacDonald Jean Biddulph Alice M. Garrison Daniel & Karen Maki Ruth Bjorvik Ruth Ann Garrison Aaron Marsh BMO Commerical Bank Robert Kevin Garro Marty & Marian Ms. Judith Boldt Mark & Sheila Gartland McGowan Maija Boriss David Gentner Marc Mellits Mr. Brady & Ms. Brian Godish Jane C. Miller Gladstone Ben Douglas Gay & Lene Dr. Michael Montgomery Marylin Breiding F. Graff & Rev. Peggy McClanahan Mr. C. Brian Hale Don & Joan Brozick Katherine J. Graffagna Diane Brucato Charles & Linda Gruber Barbara M. Mueller Linda Munson Renata & Larry Bruce Ryan & Renee Heitman Catherine L. Murschel Rachel Campbell David & Mary Alice Jane & Raymond Ruth & Ken Carlson Helms Mysliwiec Rita Carmody Laureen Hildebrand Ms. Paula Mytych James Ceithaml & Marty Brian L. Hopkinson, in Owens memory of Laura C. Small Tom & Mary Neubacher Ms. Sue Noller Carlos & Flor Chavez Erica Jimenez Richard Clute Tom & Claire Johannesen, Clare M. Ollayos, D.C., in memory of Jeanne Robert H. Coleman in memory of Phyllis Hebeisen James & Rita Corbett Ziegler Roy & Sandra Olson Christine Dalphy Judy Johnson & Blair B.L. Daniell Stringfellow, in honor of Carolyn O'Neal Darryl Deardorff Dave & Suzanne Johnson Karen Owen, in honor of Danielle and Michael John Dempsey Mildred Johnson Folker Joan DerHovsepian Janet Jones Patrick & Diane Parks James E. Dixon Suzanne Jongleux Hilda B. Price Sharyle Doherty Stephen R. Kammerer Carol Rauschenberger Joy Y. Duerr Oliver Keckeis Felicite H. Regan Lillian Croke Ken & Martha Kemp Mrs. Howard Reinert Jennifer C. Durot Judith Kendall Hans Peter Riehle Rosemary Dyson Terri Elizabeth King

Doreen L. Rodgers Jeanne Shagg Jeanine & Kurt Thurmaier John Rosenkrans Linda Siete Greg Tipps Magda Roth John Simko Stephen Tousey Carol Rupe Joe Slezinger Sue & Bill Toussaint Gregg & Anita Steamer Barb & Dennis John David Tuerck David A. Schroeder Lorece Smith, in Memory Serge & Constance Ucetta Mr. Charles Schuchat of Vera Locknar Rose & Xavier Velasco Diane Schwemm, in honor Jane E. Sorensen, in John G. Vermillion of Richard & Mary memory of Marvin Garber Steve Wasilowski Schwemm Jim & Susan Spengler Paul & Janice Weber Malvern Seagren John Steffen & Kerin Margaret Zawadzki, in Margaret Sekowski Kelly honor of Vera Locknar Pradip Sethi Mary E. Tabatt Anonymous - 2

$1-99 Ms. Joyce Allyn Julie Deines Mrs. Tracy Altheide Alain & Robert Covell Lesslie N. Amaya Joseph R. Delorier John Ambrose Allan J. Dempsey Iris L. Anderson John M. Devine James J. Auchinleck Capt. Thomas Dillon Judy Beaver Joseph Dreas Laura Bedolla Frank K. Dreier Carol J. Bergmann Mr. & Mrs. Willard Mr. & Mrs. Wayne E. Dulabaum Bessette Rita A. Ehrenberg Michelle Beutlich Gabriele Ertmann Del Bishop Cynthia Febles Diane C. Bronis Andrea Fiebig Paul Bruggeman Mary Kay Gabrielsen Russ & Pam Buckardt Sharon G. Cohen Marcia & Bill Cameron Joan M. Gazdic Mr. & Mrs. Campbell Give With Bing Katherine Canick, in THe Giving Back Fund, memory of Marvin Garber Inc Dale Art Carlson Berdie Gladstone Jay & Terry Carman Leonardo Andre Godoy Meta Carroll Bulnes Mark J. Chandler John M. Goles Clare M. Ollayos, D.C., In Lois A. Gombar memory of Ed and Pearle Grant Goodman Brody Maralee Gordon Colette J. Cox Mary Jo Gotham Jean Crisler Margaret Graham Donna Danielson Rev. & Rev. Carl & Trent Davies Donna Gray

Robert W. Hafer William Harrison Jonathan Horn Michael & Kathleen Hurd Mary Jaeger Robert F. Johnson Nancy Kading Jerome Karp Kenneth Kastler Nancy L. Kaye Jara Kern Gitta Kessler Caryn Kingseed Carolyn Kirk-Likou & Manny Likou Ms. Glenda Klein Janis Kohm Ron & Angela Korbitz Kendra Kroiss Dale Kuypers John Lanciloti Heidi Lapin Gaile A. Lapinas Elinor A. Levin John M. Licht Robert A. Lindsey Mary Catherine Long Miriam Anderson Lytle Janet B. Marks Linda McDaniel-Hale Linda Meyer

Scott J. Mische Kathy Mizgalski, in memory of Lee Gerke Pamela Ann Morong Linda Mueller Carmel Mullally-Powers Darlene Musur Carla C. Nassif Suzanne Ness Robertt Obernesser Joseph Obrien Cheryl Oie Cesar Guillermo Olivares Frank S. Orto Sandhya Paka Diana J. Palcowski Mary Rose Pavese Jacqueline Perkins Paula Ludmann Paulette M. Perry Allen E. Pollack Ken Portnoy

Dori Poulos Newton Suwe Michael G. Prais Susan Swartz Mr. & Mrs. Herb Rangl Mary Ellen Thielemann Carol Rechtoris Donna A. Tieberg Britta Reinertsen Roger W. Tilbrook Nancy K. Richardson Andrea & Matthew Clifford Rot Tolzmann Michael J. Roth Amy K. Tull Marcia Rudin Ms. Kathy Tull Marie Rutter George Vroustouris Brian Sato Joseph & Jeannette Wars Cathy Schmidt Robert F. Watt John D. Schwartz Jennifer Whitney Chelsea Sheppard Karen J. Wildner Rebecca K. Shorter Ursula Wilson Alan Simonds Bruce Wozny Mr. & Mrs. John Skura Kay Louise Wych Mrs. Patricia Small Mary Wyers George & Jan Soderberg Steven & Peggy Youngren Marilyn Stanciu Margaret Zucco Mark S Anonymous – 5 St. John's Lutheran School